The military threw out hundreds of service members in 2009 for violating its “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy, including a disproportionate number of women and minorities and dozens of service members in “mission critical” positions, according to a new analysis of military data.

The Pentagon honorably discharged 428 service members for violating the gay ban in 2009, according to statistics reviewed by the Palm Center, a nonpartisan University of California think tank studying the impact of gays in the military. The figure is down from 619 discharged for violating the policy in 2008.